Battery.



J. M. FLANNERY.

' BATTERY.

APPLICATION FILED MAYS. 19 l6.

1,217,788. Patented Feb. 27,1917.

a E 7 Z lV/TNESSES j [NV/51V TOR v I 4 V v iiflm'fzeys JDSEPH M. FLANNERY, 9F PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANXA.

BATTERY.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 2* ram.

Application filed May 3, 1916. Serial No. 95,129.

in batteries and is particularly applicable to storage batteries.

It has been found that important Factors in the perfiirn'iance and lite oi an electric im'umulator or storage battery. :1 re ih ade quate circulation of the electrolyte. and extent of exposure oi the surlace oi the active material to the elm-lrolytc. 'lhcsc two con- 'ditions are often diliiclilt to attain in practice owing to the limitsol' available for the laittery,-si-ich. "for example, as H1 vehicles and submarines. (in ihe other hand if the plates ouelccti'odcs be separated space V suliicicutly to permit the most cl'licicnt circulation of the electrolyte and its contact with the greatest possible extent of surface of the active material the internal resistance of the battery will be increased and the ciliclcncy of the battery will be decreased in proportion to the distance apart which the plates may be disposed.

The object o! my invention is to provide means whereby the plates of a storage batcry may be sulliciently spaced apart to insure. adequaie circulation of the electrolyte and contact oi the. same with a maximum extent or surface of the active n'aiterial oi the plates and at the same time a iiord such clcctrical coinluctiviivy through the clecirolylo as will obviate excessive internal re sislancc which would otherwise occur when tizc plates are spaced apart more than is usually considered maximum distance.

irii'h ti "t and other obje ts in view, the invention consi s in ccrtain novel llaitures as hereinafter set torth and pointed out in the claims.

in the accompanying: drawings; Figure l is a vertical sectional 'icw partly in clevalion illustrating a storage batteryembodyino my invention, and Fig. a horizontal sectional. view partly in elevation.

I have found in practice that the ductivity of the-electrolyte of a storage battery can be sufliciently enhanced when the plates are separated distances which will permit its'free circulation and maximum contact with the active material of the plates, to compensate for internal resistance due to such wide separation of the plates, with the use of radio-active material so disposed with respect to the plates that the conductivity of the electrolyte is enhanced between said plates due to ionizing power of the radiozu-tive niatm'ialy l lxperinients have shown that'wvhile increase of separation of the battery plates will increase the internal. resistance of the battery, still these experiments have also demonstrated the Fact that. such internal, resistance is not only balanced and connicnsated for. but also that an increase of ontput pcr unit weight is obtainech with the. presence of radio-active material between the plates.

In order to so locate and. support the riulio-active material that its ionizing power will most effectually reduce'the resistance and enhance the conductivity oi the electrolyte between comparativcly widely separated plates and without unduly contract-- ing the space between the plates, prefer to employ very thin separators l. immersed in the electrolyte between the plates 9-2 and spaced from the latter. so that the electrolyie ma y have. unrestricted circulation and contact with the active material. the plates. and utilize these thin separators to support the radio-active material.

The thin separators may he made of material which will not. he atlected or deterio rated by sulfuric acid or other electrolyte ot' a strength commonly used in storage hatierics. and said separators are provided with numerous perforations.

prefer to make the separators of cellir l-aid. and the radio-active .material may he incorpin-ated in the cellalc'l during the process of lllllllli tlfililll'fi of osu separator, so that said radioactive material shall be dis tributed throughout the and. be thus retained in such position in the electrolyte between the plates as to ioniac the same and thus aiiord numerous i1 anggible paths of conductivity throne-l he electrolyte and between all exposed races oi the active material throughout the sur iee areas of the plates. If desired the separator might be made of other material into which the radioactive substance could be incorporated, such for example, as llitlitlltt. glass or pottery ware.

As an example of the radio-active material which may be incm'porated into the cello loid or other body material 01' the separator may be mentioned. a salt of radium. which may be in the form oi a soluble chlorid or bromid or an insoluble radium sulfate, and in such quantity that the separator shall contain from one-half micrograin to five micrograms of radium. It will be readily understood that it. a soluble radium salt be incorporated into the material of the separator, such salt will be converted into insoluble sulfate when the separator is immersed in the sulfuric acid electrolyte ot' the. battery.

The separators 1 are made radio-active as above described, and constitute radioactive exciters and ionizers immersed in the electrolyte of the battery. Such radio-active exeiters and ionizers may if desired e made in the form of envelops to contain t plates of the battery "(I thus surround the. same if desired.

Various forms of radio-actor material might be used in making the exciters or ion izers but I prefer to employ a ralt of radium, which will be insoluble in the electrolyte of the battery.

I do not wish to limit myself to any specific spacing' of the ionizing separators relatively to the battery plates. and ma;' assemble them in the battery in tl san'ie manner in which wooden and rubber separators are disposed between the plates in storage batteries now in use.

Having fully described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Let ters Iatent, is:-

1. An ionizer for electric batteries, cousisting of a sheet of material carrying radioactive material.

2. An ionizer for electric batteries comprising a thin sheet of material insoluble in the electrolyte of the battery and carrying distributed radioactive material.

25. An ionizer for electric batteries comprising a sheet oi material insoluble in the. electrolyte of the battery and having radioactive material incorporated therein.

4. An ionizer for electric batteries comprising a sheet of celluloid and radioactive material incorporated in the celluloid.

An ionizer for electric batteries coinprisinga. sheet of celluloid having radioactive material incorporated therein, said sheet. having numerous wrtorations.

(5. In a battery, the combination oi' separated plates an electrolyte. and radioactive ionizers immersed in the electrolyte between the plates.

7. In a battery. the combination ol separated plates, an electrolyte. and thin separators carrying radio-active material, iinmersed in the electrolyte between the plates.

8. In a battery, the combination with ep- 'arated plates, an elect rolyte. and separators consisting, of celluloid carrving incor 'mralml radioactive material and in'nncrsed in the electrolyte.

In testimony whereof. I have signed this specification in the presence ol two sub scribing witness JOSEPH ill. I IAN'NIZRY.

Witnesses IVM. GANLEY, MAX IiAirri-ix iii-1i .\1 

